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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. race — a contest
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. field — farmland
  8. land — a country
  9. spell — letters
  10. rule — a law
  11. land — to come down
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. land — ground
  15. race — humankind
  16. spell — magic
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — for sport
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. spell — a short time
  21. scale — size or range
  22. rule — government
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — in baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com